Kodaly and Orff Music Teacher's blog

The End Product

2012-01-30T06:32:00.000-08:00

I've written extensively about Carl Orff's philosophy regarding performances. How all the arts meld into a whole. This concert by the cream of the crop in Memphis, Tennessee is a perfect example of this. Any child who wishes to dance can, and recorder, guitar, xylophones, drums, etc. are incorporated into every song. Even the choir does hand motions and textural movement to add to the songs. It's obvious that most of these movements, if not all, were student generated. There is a remarkable sense of pride and joy about this concert.

In January we are in the beginning stages of preparation for our spring concerts. Keep in mind the end product we hope to have. Let these children in Memphis inspire you. The adults chose songs from that geographical area, they relinquished enough control to the children in order to give the children ownership over their performance and personal pride in their work, and they insisted on high standards of behavior and musicianship.

Go Memphis!

Oh What A Day

2012-01-13T08:39:00.000-08:00

The best dances perfectly mirror the form and function of the music. Orff teaches this to children by choreography of rounds. Here are two examples of the song, "Oh, what a day" from Orff level programs in the US. Notice how each phrase of the round has a different choreography and then these elements are layered as the singing is layered.

Ramadan Song

2011-12-29T07:00:00.000-08:00

Imagine these palms
full of singing children!

This is a view from inside the walls of Medina. Note
how the palms are the tallest things. Children climbed
to the tippy top and sang their hearts out in
celebration!

A beautiful view of the wall of Medina at dusk.

Tala Albadru 'Alayna (O the White Moon Rose Over Us) is the story of Mohammed bringing the Koran into the city of Medina. To learn more about why he was in Medina, click here. If you want to know more about Islam and the month of Ramadan, click here for a series of videos. It's enough to say that Ramadan, a month of fasting, concludes with the celebration of Mohammad coming into the city of Medina. Children climbed into the palms to get a glimpse of Mohammad and his many followers arriving from Mecca.

The lyrics of the song are told by the children, clinging to the tops of the palms, waiting for Mohammed with anticipation. Tradition holds that this is the actual song sung to The Prophet 1400 years ago! Here is the first verse.

Tala'al-Badru 'alayna,
min thaniyyatil-Wada'
wajaba al-shukru 'alayna,
ma da'a lillahi da'

O the White Moon rose over us
From the Valley of Wada'
And we owe it to show gratefulness
Where the call is to Allah

If you want to extend the piece, why not sing one verse in Arabic and the next in English then switching back. It's also possible to hum or solfa a verse while reciting poetry. Brainstorm performance ideas with your students. Improvisation and embellishment are highly prized in Islamic performance. Don't worry about betraying the Kodaly goal of "authentic" folk music. Messing with ornaments and rearranging the song to include poetry IS authentic!

Tone set: l, Drmf

d r m f m r f m d d
d r m f m r f m
d r m f m r f m d d
d r m d r l, r d

This song is THE song to know if you ever meet an Islamic person. Just humming it will put a smile on their face! Here are some of my favorite youtube renditions. Enjoy!
Don't cringe at the intonation. IF THEY ALL DO THE SAME THING, IT'S RIGHT! Your ears are Western, they are singing in a maqam, not a scale. "Do" drifts up in a slight microtone at the end of the phrases.

This next one is very Disney.

Now for a European girl singing in the style your ears might be more used to. Lovely!

The Date of Ramadan
Muslims follow the lunar, not the solar calendar. Since the two reckonings of the year differ by 11 days, Ramadan is earlier and earlier each year. At the beginning of my teaching career, Ramadan was at the time of Christmas. For this reason, I associated it with the other winter holidays and wanted to incorporate it into winter concerts. Only now, after teaching over 10 years, do I know that Ramadan changes. During the course of a person's life of 60 or so years, they will celebrate Ramadan throughout the year, twice!

This song will be a spring song around 2018. It was a fall song for the past 5 or so years and is going to be a summer holiday (in the northern hemisphere) for the near future.

When can I perform this song?
You can program this song during an informance, winter concert or spring concert. It is a wonderful song for a special day of sharing. I intend to use it very soon. I'm thinking that it would be a great song for my preschool in the winter concert. It may also be wonderful for Grandfriend's Day, a special day we celebrate on the Friday before Mothers' Day.

My first step is to informally share what I've learned and sing this song to my Moslem colleagues and pick their brains about it. I work with women from Pakistan, Malaysia, and Iran. I have students from Lebanon, Syria, Malaysia, India, and Morocco. My next step is to gently share and discuss the song with their parents. After feeling them out on the proper context for presenting the song I may choose to simply use it in music class. Perhaps I'll save it for a unit on religion in Upper Elementary or for a U.N. Day concert next year.

Joan Litman with some of
her charges.

If you would like to incorporate this or any other Arabic or Farsi songs into your teaching, do so carefully and with the greatest respect for the culture of your school. Make sure your administration knows what you are doing. They really hate to be blindsided by anything that might be considered controversial. In this age of post-9/11 stereotyping, it's very important that we carefully pave the way of peace with sensitivity and love.

This song was taught to me by Joan Litman, music teacher and choir director at The United Nations International School (UNIS). Joan doesn't shy away from incorporating religious music or sacred music into the curriculum, but she does so very gently and with respect.

Buying a Sound System for Your School

2011-11-10T13:38:00.000-08:00

As a musician and a music teacher, people look to me as an expert in all things auditory. Well, I'm NOT! But I don't need them to know that!

If there's one thing that is common to all successful and influential people, it is that they know when to ask for help! And they know who to ask. That is what I'm doing.

November 10, 2011

We're hiring a consultant to help us decide what to buy.

With $100 from my benevolent administrator, we are hiring a consultant to come to our school, look at our current system and figure out the best way for us to meet our needs without breaking the bank. He's arriving in two weeks. I'll keep this post updated and let you know what is going on.
November 22, 2011

Fender Passport 300 Pro Portable PA System

Recording engineer, Jeremy Sarna from New England Conservatory came to consult with me and see our set-up. He recommended the Fender Passport 300 Pro. He thought it was a good, sturdy unit that was easy to operate and met our needs well. Click here to see the features and price.

He had some ideas for portable mics for us. We needed to price cordless mics because...

the configuration of our auditorium and our fire safety codes mean that the placement of the cords during concerts would be tricky to impossible.
Little feet get tangled in and pull out cords very easily.
we've ruined several mics because of children fiddling with the cords while announcing or singing.

He recommended this mic for price and quality. He also told us that putting the receiver in a hard case would greatly prolong the life of the unit. Cases can be for one system like this one or for multiple systems like this one. It all depends on your program and weather you expect to need multiple mics or not.

Jeremy recommended that we get all the accessories that go with these items like speaker stands, mic stands, mic cables, and a power strip (for the PA plus the wireless receivers).

November 23, I'm writing up my final suggestions for our Head of School and submitting them to her for purchase next Monday! I'll definitely post audio of our upcoming concert pieces if all goes well!

Figure out your needs

do you need amplification for outdoor concerts?
do you use a lectern?
do you have a live or dead auditorium?
does your chorus need amplification?
does your piano need amplification?
would you like to have a piano, microphone, mic that amplifies instruments, guitar pick-up, and computer hooked up to the same speaker?
do you put on plays or do musical theater?
what are your hopes and dreams for your program? What will that need?
what equipment do you already have?

What do you like about it?
Why are you considering updating or changing your equipment? Be detailed, try to recall instances where the equipment hasn't met your needs.

After you have written down exactly what you have and what you want and the differences between the two, you can try to find someone with the knowledge to help you find your sound system!

How to choose a consultant

HIRE A GUY LIKE THIS! He works in a live concert
environment. He records as his full-time job. He is not biased.
He can work with small or large groups, solo and tutti

Choose someone who is not motivated by a possible sale
Choose someone with expertise in sound systems for music, specifically acoustic music and acoustic music mixed with electronic inputs
Find a place where that person might be working full-time

a theater
a concert hall
local conservatory, music school, or University
a school with a sound system that you really liked when you heard it

Find someone who works with sound, recording, amplification, and equipment DAILY, as their #1 job!
DO NOT CONSULT THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE

DON'T HIRE US FOR THIS!

Performers

Rock musicians or Rap musicians (Hip hop, etc)

these people do not have a strong acoustic element to their performances and will be unfamiliar with your needs

Acoustic performers

DON'T HIRE ME FOR THIS.

these people do not have a strong electronic element to their performances, they also tend to know their instrument or instrument family well to the exclusion of others. Their knowledge is too specialized for the broader needs of a school

DON'T HIRE ME FOR THIS

these people do not have a strong acoustic element to their performances and will be unfamiliar with your needs

Amateur enthusiasts

these people are very boutique in their knowledge and do not know the breadth of options to creatively come up with a solution for you.

Solo singers

these people are interested in holding the microphone right to their face and are unable to consult on equipment for regular speaking, lecterns, choruses, instruments, etc.

Television or movie people

DON'T HIRE A GUY WHO WORKS
HERE

these people are not accustomed to engineering sound for live performance. If they are personally close you, you might have a conversation and see if they can help you. Most of these people started out in live performance. It all depends on how long it has been since they did that kind of work.

An audio company

We have Bose located right here in Massachusetts. We didn't consult with them because they have a motivation to sell us their equipment. We want to keep the profit motive out of the opinion we get.

We could have asked one of the dozens of colleges for help. Almost all the colleges around here have full-time engineers for their halls. We also have auditoriums, Symphony Hall, and the opera house in Boston. Any of those would be great places to find consultants.

Don't know what to say when you call?

This is what I said. First, I found the direct number through the Conservatory website. I called and said....

"Hello, my name is _____________ from _______________School. I would like you or someone in your department to consult with me about a sound system for our school. I'm an alum of New England Conservatory and so I thought of you first. Unfortunately, I'm a French Horn player. My knowledge about amplification is to blow harder! I need your help. Can you do it?"

He said, "We've never provided this service before."

I said, "I don't want to take much of your time. I'm sure that my questions are very rudimentary to you, but I just don't know what is out there. I doubt that it would take more than a half hour of your time. I have trouble with our microphone, it only works if your face is right in it, it isn't great at a lectern and doesn't help amplify a chorus. I also need to be able to put multiple inputs in our speaker which now only does one thing at a time. I just need someone without a profit motive to assess my needs and give me good advice."

He said, "Sounds pretty basic, but definitely not common knowledge. I see what you mean. I'll have _______call you back, maybe he can help."

Well, he called back and was very enthusiastic about coming. He will earn $100 for having a cup of coffee with me. We'll save thousands in equipment that would not meet our needs.

Do Schools Kill Creativity

2011-11-04T16:55:00.000-07:00

I enjoy Ted Talks. I came across this one that speaks to arts education and creativity in all areas of education as a must. Enjoy!

Music, the brain, and science

2011-10-25T13:03:00.000-07:00

Middle School Diana Deutsch lesson
I just taught this to my older students and I've got to tell you about it! When I did some work for The Boston Symphony, I contacted Diana Deutsch of the University of California, San Diego. I never used her work on the modules for the BSO, but I continue to be intrigued by her research. This lesson is especially exciting when you mention to the children that Audacity is a shareware (free) opensource program that they can download and do these experiments themselves.

This is my favorite CD from Diana Deutsch. It is the one
whose examples I played for my class.

I used this information as little snippets within a choral lesson. I'm introducing some holiday pieces and, each time the students sang particularly well, I gave them some "ear candy" in the form of a new aural illusion or example. For example: we began rehearsal for "Come Follow Me" by Linda Spevacek. Students learned the A section on solfa and sang it in tune with proper syllables and a good, strong voice. Their reward was to hear the phantom word illusion. In this illusion the students hear two, one-syllable sounds spoken together. With repeated hearing, the brain turns these chaotic sounds into words, sound effects, or other illusions. I didn't tell students what they should hear, but asked them what they did hear. Their answers were amazing! One child heard a Spanish word. Another, a phrase about tests. Still more heard silly words. Here is a link to what my students heard. What do you hear?

The children learned some other material and I gave them some more "ear candy." This time it was the illusion of singing within speech. Listen to this sentence.

Phantom words and phantom singing, just in time
for Halloween!

Thomas Jefferson and I raw
A typical sentence, right? Well, let's see. What if I play part of that sentence in a loop?
Thomas Jefferson and I loop
Now that you've heard that loop, go back and listen to the original clip. Do you sense that this young man is suddenly breaking into song in the middle of his sentence? That's the illusion! It's also proof that speaking is singing and singing is speaking.

Here's another one. I got this young lady to overcome her self-consciousness by talking about something that she finds annoying. Getting their ire up is great for having them exaggerate inflection. This also works when you have teachers discuss the teaching process, have a person talk about a hobby, or having a new parent talk about their baby.
I really don't like yogurt
Here's the loop.
I really don't like yogurt loop
What really jazzed my students was that they could download audacity and DO IT THEMSELVES!!! I was so psyched! Students who ordinarily need so much pushing were singing like canaries today, so anxious to hear the next illusion.

La Vaca Lola

2011-09-22T09:36:00.000-07:00

This song is soooooooo fun! You can teach the Spanish and then do some Latin dancing. I just stumbled upon this song via youtube and my Middle Schoolers wanted to know what the fuss was about. They would like to learn the song! I am definitely going to teach this in preschool. Vamanos!

Thinking Inside the Volumes #6, Street Song

2011-08-01T10:20:00.000-07:00

Not my students, but a good group of Middle School
Orff players. My Middle Schoolers were 7 boys and
2 girls.

My Middle Schoolers performed Street Song in Volume 3 of the Murray Edition Orff volumes. It was their graduation performance number and they pulled it off really well! Here is what they sounded like a few days before graduation. I was not thrilled with some of the distracted performances, but the kids had just gone to an amusement park and participated in loads of end-of-year parties. The actual graduation was not recorded but it was amazingly clean and tight. Nobody forgot where we were in the pattern, all rhythms were either on time or rushing slightly. They sounded amazing and the audience was really impressed. As you listen, remember how well kids can take notes, right up to the very end. This is a very scary piece to put together because so much can go wrong. We did this with 9 students.
Street Song better
What was is it like for them? This is what they had to say. Street music interviewsWhen I hear these young men speak, I hear the pride and confidence in their voices. The girls were asked to contribute, but they are shy persons.

The Process (March-May about 8 classes. April vacation, field trips, field day, etc. cut out loads of practice and class periods. No extra rehearsals until June and even then it was to replace what they didn't have because their regular music class was preempted by a field trip or other special event. They only practiced twice with me in June, all others were on their own.)
I. Introduction
A. This is tough
1. Students need to know that this is a piece that the best teachers can only do once or twice in their career.
2. Students need to know the time needed to pull it off.
3. Students need to make a commitment and set a date for the point of no return. That's it, that's their decision.
4. Play them the Youtube video.

B. You can do this!
5. Have a chart of the chord progressions in Roman numerals and have students play a three pattern of chord roots on bar instruments. (ta rest ta)
6. Repeat this introduction for a month of lessons. Give exams on memorizing the chord pattern. Don't give in and write letter names, just chord Roman numerals. Remember, this is foundation for theme and variations. The variations use non-root notes.

II. Variations
1. [concept] Have students break into voice groups (metal, wood, soprano, bass, etc.) Perform tandem variations of the chord progression using only chord roots. The variation will be in timbre ONLY.
a. This does two things, it keeps students concentrating and is a good test for memorization
b. It teaches theme and variations with smooth transitions
2. Introduce non-pitch percussion instruments
a. I find that if students map out a theme and variations and they choose instruments for each it works best. Let's say that in step B1 your class follows this pattern (tutti, wood, metal, tutti), you may add wood blocks in a new rhythm (agree on this) for the wood variation, sleigh bells for the metal, and wood block, sleigh bells, and triangle for the ending tutti variation. Play with different combinations.
b. Hocket: this is a good time to introduce the most famous variation in Street Song, the hocket variation. This variation is at 1:17 in the Youtube version. In this the students fill in the hole left by the rest in the original (ta rest ta) pattern. Now they play (rest ta rest). This can be done as a teacher vs student game. TEACHER GOES FIRST. Treat this as a game and only add it after some students really have the feel for it. Tambourine and claves are great on the hocket.

III. Non-root Chord tones and 3-Mallet
a. 3-mallet
1. Show the physical task of 3 mallet and the visual and physical pattern of the notes.
2. Only have students who want to learn this task be charged with learning it.
3. Play teacher on 3-mallet against students on roots to introduce this.
4. Add 3-mallet to variations or allow two people to try it between variations as a test or challenge
b. Improvisation
1. Using two glocks or two xylophones, make a three-chord structure by removing strategic bars. Front instrument has the I chord on the left and the V7 chord on the right. Rear instrument is the IV chord. This is how two glocks would be. With this set up, the player can hit any notes in the area of the chord and just follow the progression as memorized.
C F A C F A
C E G CD FG B
2. Practice with (ta rest ta) pattern as first learned, but with two mallets at a time playing notes.
3. Change to more complicated patterns like (ta ta-ti ta, ta ti-ti ta [same thing, different style of neumonic]) It's amazing how good kids can sound on this!

IV. Movement and Visual Art
1. If you have enough people to play the piece, don't forget the visual element. You can...

Have a montage of the school year or special project running as students play.
use scarves or body socks to bring an abstract form and color element to the movement
make up dance theme and variations
collaborate with the art teacher on costuming, set, or other visual elements
incorporate movement into the mallet technique and general movement of the players among instruments and moving to new instruments (ex: a variation off to go from Bass Xylophone to tambourine would involve movement)
placement of instruments on stage can change or be unusual to facilitate playing and effect
brainstorm more ways to add visual interes

V. The Murray notes
A. Murray gave suggested ways to play Street Song. You can teach the notes in the volumes by rote, reading, or pattern or you can introduce the gist of the pattern and have students improvise ideas, settling on their own variations. I like this to be student generated. I think it works well for students to find their craft. I also think it's important for teachers to challenge students out of their comfort zone and learn more difficult patterns.

In the end, you have to use your judgement to guide students through this process. But it is a process. It is the process that the kids will remember. They will remember the feeling of the end piece and the collaboration of the process.

Good luck!

Lifelong Stress Management

2011-07-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

Many professions are stressful. People deal with this stress in various ways. Some drink, others have secret personas, still more get abrupt and isolated, many get divorced, have heart attacks, become socially isolated depressed. What about singing? What about playing the cello? What about dancing? What about acting?

I've come across some videos that you might find motivating as you rest and prepare for your next school year. These are people in high stress jobs who use the arts to bring joy, fun, camaraderie, intellectual satisfaction, and humor into their lives. Some videos are appropriate for all age levels, always use caution when sharing with students or colleagues. Enjoy!

Thinking Inside the Volumes #5

2011-07-20T16:47:00.000-07:00

Volume V
page 114
Chorus from Sophocles' "Antigone"
Greek chorus

I don't know of anyone who doesn't get a rush from listening to Carmina Burana, Carl Orff's most famous work. The orchestration is simple, but very thick. A huge orchestra blankets the stage. The battery slugs our souls with gongs, drums, clanging cymbals, and sharp xylophones. The enormous chorus floods us with sound, primal modes course through us. We are entranced in a primal frenzy of ancient sounds!

This feeling is possible to capture in the classroom. There are some skills the students must have first though.

They must know how to respect and care for all the instruments used
They must have experience with movement and dance in performance
They must have modal music in their ears from songs, improvisations, or creative movement
They must embrace the text for the Greek chorus
They must have a sense of community, and be capable of working together as a group

While the Sophocles excerpt on page 114 is compelling, I prefer to find a quote that the students can connect to even more. I'm a big Harry Potter fan, the following quote begins the 7th book of that series. Aeschylus was also a favorite poet of John F. Kennedy, the late president and famous Massachusetts native.

from Aeschylus'Libation Bearers:

Oh, the torment bred in the race, the grinding scream of death and the stroke that hits the vein, the haemorrhage none can staunch, the grief, the curse no man can bear.

But there is a cure in the house and not outside it, no, not from others but from them, their bloody strife. We sing to you, dark gods beneath the earth.

Now hear, you blissful powers underground - answer the call, send help. Bless the children, give them Triumph now.

- Prologue quote from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling

On this blog of a classics buff, I found a more literal translation.

O trouble bred in the family, and discordant bloody stroke of doom, alas woeful cares not to be borne, alas pain hard to stop!

It is for the house [to apply the] absorbent remedy for these [wounds], not from others outside, but from themselves, through savage bloodstained strife. This is a hymn to the gods beneath the earth.

But paying heed, o blessed ones under ground, to this prayer, send aid to the children, graciously, for victory.

My thoughts are to use this material with Middle School aged students. We will play with the textures from Orff's Sophocles chorus, and go from there. Both translations will be available to them. They can edit according to their muse. The important thing is a final product that will engage and excite them.

Imagine the video below doing their pattern and they abruptly stop and one of the above paragraphs is melodramatically spoken, then the music starts up again. Another stop, yet another paragraph. You can have pantomime of the action during the reading or after, during the music.

There are many melodramas playing out now in the news: The accusations of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the financial crisis in Greece or Portugal or Ireland or Spain, global climate change, dictatorships in the Middle East and Northern Africa, and many many more. Tread lightly here, you never know if you'll be stepping on toes to bring up something in the news.

The Lighter Side

2011-07-15T04:32:00.000-07:00

Wow! Harry Potter 8 has opened and it is AWESOME. Here's the trailer.

It's a shame to see Mr. Potter die, but that's the story. It ain't American, it's British. Oops, spoiler! Tee hee

My latest addiction is the Jason Isaacs suspense, thriller series The State Within. Here's a clip from the first show.

This series is just amazing. I call it, "24, only good." It's 7 episodes of sheer genius. You can instantly stream via Netflix. Don't expect everything to be neatly tied-up and resolved or clear good and bad guys. This is British, not American. Enjoy!

An Interview with Composer Ruth Elaine Schram

2011-07-11T18:40:00.000-07:00

Ruth Elaine Schram conducting

Ruth Elaine Schram interview

Clips of choral music provided courtesy of BriLee publishers and Ruth Elaine Schram. They include

Song of the Open Road (opening song)

In a Gadda Da Vida

All for a Baby (not the song mentioned, but a similar Christmas song)

Blow, Blow, Thou Winter Wind (words by Shakespeare)
I love this piece! It's so simple, easy to play, and the lyrics are the star. What an inspiring piece of music.

Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening, my arrangement (not available in print or mp3, clip at )

Youtube performance of Walk In Jerusalem, a Rollo Dillworth song with a tough and rockin' piano part

How Can I Keep From Singing (end credits)

Ruth Elaine Schram wrote her first song at the age of twelve, and her first octavo was published twenty years later, in 1988. In 1992, she became a full-time composer and arranger and now has over 1,700 published works. Over sixteen million copies of her songs have been purchased in their various venues, and she has been a recipient of the ASCAP Special Award each year since 1990. In addition to her choral music for church and school choirs, her songs appear on thirty albums (four of which have been Dove Award Finalists) and numerous children's videos, including sixteen songs on four gold videos, and four songs on one multi-platinum video. Her songs have also appeared on such diverse television shows as "The 700 Club" and HBO's acclaimed series "The Sopranos."
Ruthie began piano and theory lessons at the age of five. She studied music at Lancaster Bible College and Millersville State College and taught Elementary Music in Pennsylvania for several years. She now lives in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband, Scott Schram (his site, not music related), and they have two grown daughters, Crystie and Celsie.
Her current published works, with audio excerpts and select pages of the scores, are listed on her web site: choralmusic.com

Patriotic Songs

2011-07-04T00:58:00.000-07:00

If children do not learn patriotic songs from us, they don't learn them at all. You need to have this in mind when you approach your learning for the year. Let's look at several patriotic songs and analyze them. It will help you place them in your curriculum and plan your concerts well.

The Star Spangled Banner
(Grade 4+)
Previous knowledge:

singing a 10th in tune
singing semitones in tune
partner songs in tune
ternary form
question and answer phrases
"head voice" vocabulary
"dipthong" vocabulary
so-mi-do able to read at sight in stick and staff notation

New Challenges for the Song

range of a 12th (octave plus a fifth, do-so')
changing vocal placement between A and B sections
diction can be tough
memorizing words and unlearning previous mistakes
singing in a pressure situation

Octavos?

Here is a treble option. Note the intonation problems with women singing in their chest voice (lower). Also, the diction sounds like they are British, not quite the best for the American anthem. Also, the crowd is NOT in the mood for a concert performance. They want to cheer after the end of the tune. Keep this in mind when you choose or edit an arrangement for a sporting event. But, all in all, a lovely performance. It's a pressure situation and they just shine.

This example of acapella Elementary singing is impressive. This teacher has them singing in two parts. They lose very little in pitch and their head voices are mostly quite clear. I tried to find other Elementary choruses, but they were throat straining for the high notes, that's the biggest danger of this song. Good teaching, Mr. Larson!

Battle Hymn of the Republic

(Grade 2+)

Previous knowledge:

singing in tune in head voice
singing in range of an octave
"ostinato" vocabulary
singing with ostinati and partner songs

New Challenges

a very long song
different age groups singing together
a more old fashioned style of music, very 19th Century
archaic lyrics and highly religious sentiments

Octavos?

Note the religious (Christian) imagry behind the words, this is NOT an accident. This song is very religious, that's one of the reasons it is no longer standard American school repertoire. However, if you teach in an area of the country or in a school that will be okay with that, go for it. This is a lovely song and part of American history.

The famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing the same.

Irving Berlin, composer of
God Bless America

God Bless America

(Grade 2+)

s,-l Major 9th

Previous knowledge

singing an octave range in tune
singing semi-tones in tune
mimicking scales and singing scale patterns in various songs

New Challenges

shaping longer phrases
crescendi on high notes (part of shaping the phrases)
singing lists and using these lists to extend the phrases (see above)

Though "God" is in the title, this song is much less Christian than Battle Hym of the Republic. Many (including me) believe that it is a much better choice for our national anthem than The Star Spangled Banner. The smaller range, scalar note movement, and logical lyrics with modern English make it a much better choice. Here is a modest example of an Elementary Choir singing with just a snare drum as accompaniment.

Yankee Doodle

(PreK+)

s,-f minor 7th

This song is wonderful for all ages. Its history is interesting for older students (explained below), there is a Weikhart dance in the Rhythmically Moving series for the middle Elementary ages, and it's just fun and easy for younger students to learn.

History: This song was originally a British song which poked fun at the unrefined "Yankees" in the American colonies. At the time, pasta had just been introduced into English cuisine. It was new, fancy, cosmopolitan. Anything that was new, fancy, or cosmopolitan was considered "macaroni." It's like how we call things "the Cadillac of..." today. In that lights, "stuck a feather in his hat and called it macaroni" makes sense.

Recorder

f# (D, E, F#, G, A, B, C)
drum accompaniment with recorder (imitating fife and drum)

America The Beautiful

(Grade 3+)

s,-l major 9th

previous knowledge

singing an octave in tune
d-t,-d
diphthongs
vowels vs consonants in singing

New challenges

changing into head voice for answer phrases
group diction

This song is a gorgeous one. It begins with a kind of smooth warm-up in do, re, mi notes. The change-over into the head voice is natural and beautiful. It's easy to explain diphthongs with the lyrics "O beautiful," "spacious skies" (speh-ee-she-uhs skah-ee-s). Also consonants like keeping the "p" in purple and t in mountains.

This Land is Your Land

s,-f minor 7th

Woody Guthrie

Previous knowledge

singing a 6th in tune
outlining major triads in echoes, games, and songs
rhyming words

New Challenges

verse-chorus structure
rhythmic form AAAAAAB

This is a wonderful hootenanny song. Though composed by Woodie Guthrie, the notes and words have changed as millions of people have sung it. Now it is a true folksong. You can sing it in unison or as part of a patriotic medley octavo.

Making up Games

2011-06-25T16:16:00.000-07:00

"We're dances looking for good music!"

Authenticity is part of the code of Kodaly. If the game is not authentic, don't do it. Games that are folk games are easier to learn, more logically married to the music, and ultimately, more fun. I whole-heartedly agree with this,but, what if you come across an awesome song that is just screaming for a game? What if that song is too short to stand on its own? What if the game is not in any sources you can find? What then?

Adopt a game that has no song.

Where do you find these games?

Youtube

Watching children play at recess

Asking teachers what kind of games the children naturally play for indoor recess. Finding out what kinds of board and card games kids are doing so that you might adopt the structure of the game to a known rhyme or song.

Example: Shoo Turkey

This classic song is from Step it Down. Traditionally it is sung while students crouch and gracefully sweep the turkeys away. I adopted it for preschool so that two songs are linked together into one game. I saw children playing a game where the whole class hides their eyes and a single student goes into a "fort" and sticks out one foot. The rest of the students open their eyes and guess whose foot that is.

I begin the song with the call-response song from the Bessie Jones book. Then, when the children's heads are down I sing "As I was walking yonder hill I spied a mighty turkey" from Folksongs North America Sings. During that, I go among the students and touch two heads, those children go to the hiding place. When heads are called "up," children take turns guessing who is missing. It's great fun.

A Kodaly teacher (purist) enjoyed the game but urged me not to use it since it was not authentic. I'm going with the joy of the children on this one. The game is an authentic children's game, though not usually with this song. Since the game is not adult-made, it's fun. Kids know best!

Challenge: Listen to this song and make up a game!

Just for Fun

2011-06-20T08:44:00.000-07:00

The blog readership has gone down considerably as we approach the end of the year. You all are way too busy to be reading the blog every week. I'll work on articles for July and August, when you are studying and prepping for next year. Until then, take a moment to see a cool video here and there in June. Here are some neat selections that I love.

Elementary School Musical

2011-06-13T07:04:00.000-07:00

Rules to avoid burn-out and provide musicals for your students'performance needs.

My very best friend, the woman who suggested that I become a music teacher some 10 years ago, is currently a heap of burnt ash after her spring musicals. I said, "well at least you got the extra cash to help the family." There was silence. "What? You didn't get paid extra for this?"

I write this article for her and anyone else in her position to refer to BEFORE they say "yes" to next year's musical. The goal here is to love your kids, your job, and to instill love of music in the performers. If you overextend yourself, you become resentful and burnt out! I would like to teach the children of my current students. In order to do that, I need to construct my work environment so that it is humane to me. Nothing inspires children like a teacher who is excited and passionate about her work.

1. Calculate the rehearsals you'll need, include auditions, dress rehearsals, individual coaching and tech rehearsals. Double that number if you've never done a musical before. Multiply that number by the hourly wage you deserve or minimum wage. DON'T DO A MUSICAL UNLESS YOUR EXTRA COMPENSATION ACTUALLY COMPENSATES YOU.

2. A portion of the receipts is NOT acceptable. You need to be paid for your work. A portion of receipts can be a bonus, but that's not the job. What if there's a snow storm or other event that severely impacts the house. You cannot gamble with your financial well-being.

3. If you need help, get it. Everyone needs to be paid fairly and treated with respect. Without that respect, YOU WILL BURN OUT.

4. Stick to your guns. It's better to not do a musical at all than to be taken advantage of. Working for free makes our profession look like a hobby instead of a true profession. Doctors have hearts and care too, but they don't work for free. They need to pay back student loans, mortgages, etc., just like you do.

Now that most of your musicals are over for the year, enjoy this episode of South Park. It's a bit irreverent, but I love it. Enjoy!

Elementary School Musical (VOSTFR). Vidéo crenon_ob sélectionnée dans TV/Séries

How to buy a guitar

2011-06-06T12:29:00.000-07:00

Better Guitars have the little snake of wood between top

and sides.

If you have one, why not use it? If it's too big, your child will have trouble getting his/her arms around it. In that case, you should probably get a smaller guitar. My favorite way to get a guitar is at pawn shops or flea markets. Here are tips to apply while shopping.
How can you tell if a guitar is really good?

Look into the hole of the guitar. There should be wood that joins the top and bottom flat pieces to the sides of the guitar. It looks like a snake of scored wood. Look here at this photo of a restoration for a vintage Gibson guitar. Do you see the snake of wood? That is the mark of a really good guitar. Such a guitar is worth a few hundred dollars. I got mine at a pawn shop for less than $200.

When to get an expensive guitar

If your child is 10 or younger, I suggest you get a child's guitar and spend no more than $80. See if the child gets excited and practices with dedication. After a year or two you can look into a guitar. It will be appreciated and treasured if you wait. You may also develop a really cool story about how you found the guitar. That's always fun. Your child's instrument is a friend of sorts. They spend hours together and grow up together. If your child really falls in love with the instrument, he/she should have a guitar that really suits him/her. It's good to wait. Here is a link to a site to buy a children's guitar at a reasonable price. There are other brands available on the site, just poke around a bit if you want to compare. I suggest 1/2 size for children under 10 and 3/4 for kids under 10-12.

Nylon strings are best. The low E, A, and D have a

metal coating, but they are still considered nylon.

IT DOESN'T MATTER IF THERE ARE NO STRINGS! They cost $5 at any music store. I'll show you how to put them on then you can do it yourself. No big whoop. Use a lack of strings to talk down the price. Pretend that it effects the value of the instrument. IT DOESN'T. I love flea markets!

GET NYLON STRINGS, EVEN IF YOUR GUITAR HAS METAL ONES. Your beginner fingers will be cut and they will BLEED. You need to have the nylon strings to avoid this.

Here's a primer on the different kinds of guitars available.

Classical Guitar:

This guitar is smaller than the other guitars. It is light and the sound is sweetest. This is my favorite kind of guitar. This guitar is made for facility on the fretboard (neck). The technique for playing classical guitar is to have one foot on a stool and the guitar pointing upward. Click here for a video of a great classical guitarist.

People who really apply themselves to a musical instrument have fallen in love with the sound. They want to make that sound. As beginners they sometimes have a glimpse of that heaven and it urges them onward. That's how I am with classical guitar. I just love the sound of it. If you love it too, get a classical guitar.

This is Chet Atkins playing country music on guitar. His sound and technique are like that of classical guitar. He has a gorgeous fluency and is considered one of the greatest players of all time.

Notice the close-up of his nails. He has long nails on his right hand and short nails on his left. Enjoy the lesson at the second half of the video. He gets such a lovely sound.

Western Guitar

Western Guitars have large rear ends.
They also have a guard to protect

the body from the pick. Here it's black

and kidney-shaped by the rosette

Imagine a guitar that knows what fried butter is. It's gonna have a big behind, isn't it? Well, that's what a Western-style guitar is. Johnny Cash played one of these. So did Elvis. You hold this kind of guitar on your lap with the neck parallel with the ground. Look how Johnny Cash holds his guitar. His right arm just rests over the guitar's backside. This is a great guitar for a singer. The guitar takes a back seat to the vocals.

I decided to play guitar because I wanted to play chords for songs. That is precisely what country guitar is. These guitars tend to be much too large for a child player. They are built for full-grown men.

This is a wonderful video of Johnny Cash in his later years. He's a great storyteller with a guitar. Notice the wonderful carpet of sound that his song walks upon.

Electric Guitars are awesome, but keep them at home

Electric Guitar

This kind of guitar is NOT good for lessons. You need an amp to hear it at all. You may want one at home if this is the sound you love. Here is a link to Santana playing fantastic electric guitar. Please do NOT bring electric guitar to lessons. Hooking up to amps and tweeking volume will take the entire lesson. The important thing is for you to learn technique. You can keep your electric guitar in your bedroom. Use an acoustic for lessons please.

One of the great guitarists of all time is jazz player, Charlie Christian. Here he is playing big band music. He uses a Gibson guitar, an electric guitar that sounds and plays like an acoustic. This kind of guitar is built more in the classical proportions than Western ones.

According to the Gibson site, Eddie Van Halen is one of the top 10 guitarists of all time. Here he is doing a rock solo. He has wonderful facility and amazing technique. Yes, he breaks in and out of playing Bach and some Spanish etudes among his riffs. It's obvious that Mr. Van Halen knows classical technique.

A word about left-handed guitar

You need two hands to play guitar. I myself am left-handed. I play the guitar in the regular way. I will NOT teach you if you play with your guitar stringed upside down and backwards. I know there have been great lefty guitarists. They are all self-taught. I'll teach you the regular way.

How to buy a piano

2011-05-30T09:16:00.000-07:00

The following is a primer that I give to parents of beginning piano students. When parents do not follow this advice, they tend to spend buckets of money and have an unsatisfactory buying experience. Please use this to help your students have good experiences with beginning piano!

Buying a Piano

DON'T! There are so many kids who take piano and drop it after a few lessons, that there are hundreds of pianos available for free throughout Massachusetts. Wait until you've taken piano for a few years and develop a devotion to it before you invest the thousands you'd need for a great piano or keyboard. Here are some tips.
Go to the Freecycle site and see if you can find a free piano near you.

See the piano and feel the keys under your fingers. Make sure that the touch of the piano is comfortable. Make sure that the keys have the same volume at every key for the same amount of pressure. Broken strings, felt on hammers, and other small repairs can be fixed by a piano technician. No matter what piano you buy, you'll be paying a minimum of $100 to get it tuned in your home.

This piano is good for firewood, but not to play.

Water circles from beverage cans and glasses, scratches, etc. are aesthetic. I love them because you'll never worry about keeping the finish looking beautiful.

Water damage, missing keys, and a tinny sound are not fixable. Don't buy a piano that doesn't sound pleasing.

Do not settle for an electronic keyboard with fewer than 88 keys! Get an electronic piano with all the keys, a stand, and a good bench if you decide to go electric. The best thing to do is to go acoustic. Fancy, expensive keyboards are for students who have shown that they are dedicated and will practice diligently.

This piano isn't pretty, but it's functional. It will do!

Wait until your child is out of book 2, has outgrown my instruction, and is excited about playing for a lifetime before spending lots of money on a keyboard or piano. It's too much pressure on the child, and it's not fair to the family budget.

NOT A GOOD CHOICE!
This bench is hard and not adjustable

A Good Bench

Fancy, expensive, tufted piano bench

You will need a good piano bench. You can get nice ones for about $50 at any music store. The bench should be adjustable. You will have many different people playing the piano, even if they are only your child. Just imagine how your child is going to grow in the next 5 years. You'll need to adjust the bench, if only for him/her. I like the model pictured here. It's comfortable and cheap.

If you insist on a piano and bench being an exquisite set of furniture, get an adjustable bench with tufted, leather seat.

A poorly fitted bench will result in hand problems, back pain, and quitting the instrument. Ergonomics are really important in instrument playing.

The BEST choice. This bench is comfortable, inexpensive
and adjustable. As your child grows, the bench adjusts.
It's also very portable.

Fancy, expensive, tufted piano bench

If you insist on a piano and bench being an exquisite set of furniture, get an adjustable bench with tufted, leather seat.

A poorly fitted bench will result in hand problems, back pain, and quitting the instrument. Ergonomics are really important in instrument playing.

Literature in the Music Classroom #2,

2011-05-23T16:38:00.000-07:00

*This series of posts is authored by Orff Master Teacher, Linda Ahlstedt. See the foot of each post for her bio and contact information.

Children love stories, they love to be entertained and they like to use their imaginations. Using children’s literature and storytelling in the music classroom is a fantastic way to encourage improvisation, theatric expression, a sense of rhythm and rhyme, while having some good old fashioned fun. Many of the books that are conducive to the music classroom are stories with which the children are familiar, and acting them out brings them newly to life. The incredible twists you can add in music class are just icing on the cake.

For a list of literature for the PreSchool-Grade 2 Classroom, see the post dated May 16, 2011.

Grades 3-6

Possum Come a Knockin’ by Nancy Van Leer (add instruments for characters and act out)

Fortunately/Unfortunately by Remy Charlip (great story to teach Do based pentatonic “Fortunately” and La based pentatonic “Unfortunately”)

Crocodile Beat by Gail Jorgensen (rhyming book-act out and layer in unpitched percussion ostinati for various animals)

Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Verna Aardema (cumulative book for creating music and improvisation)

Traveling to Tondo by Verna Aardema (use of instruments to imitate animals’ movements)

The Flute Player by Michael Lacapa (use of recorders with a simple improvised

B A G E melody

Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock by Eric Kimmel (use of instruments for sound effects)

Anansi the Spider by Gerald McDermott (use instruments to represent characters-add In the Jungle and Funga Alafia-attached in notes)

Jabuti the Tortoise by Gerald McDermott (use recorder music for Jabuti’s Song and instruments to represent characters from the Amazon rainforest)

Papagayo by Gerald McDermott (create a song for Papagayo, the Moon Dog and the Night Creatures-act out this trickster tale of the Amazon)

Sun Flight by Gerald McDermott (use Greek music and dance to act out the story of Daedalus and Icarus)

Arrow to the Sun by Gerald McDermott (use Native American music to tell this Pueblo Indian tale-see attached notes)

The Stonecutter by Eric Carle (DeLelles/Kriske have composed a mini musical for this Japanese folk tale in grade 4 MacMillan)

Daniel O’Rourke by Gerald McDermott ( an Irish tale)

Coyote by Gerald McDermott (a trickster tale from the American southwest)

See all Fiction Books reviews at Expotv

Zomo the Rabbit by Gerald McDermott (a trickster tale from West Africa)
See below how adults have taken this tale and turned it into a performance piece. This is well within the Orff concept of performance. Dance, singing (rapping), stage craft, and non-vocal music are used.

Here is an upper elementary treatment of the tale in a classic Orff performance.

Musicians of the Sun by Gerald McDermott (an ancient Aztec tale)

Raven by Gerald McDermott (a trickster tale from the Pacific Northwest)

The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry (a tale of the Amazon rainforest)

Brother Eagle, Sister Sky by Chief Seattle, paintings by Susan Jeffers

Cloud Dance, Mountain Dance, Water Dance by Thomas Locker ( three beautifully illustrated nature books for music and movement)

The First Song Ever Sung by Laura Krauss Melmed (compose music for the various songs of brother, sister, man, grandfather etc-add movement)

Thirty Three Multi Cultural Tales to Tell by Pleasant DeSpain (a tapestry of world folklore and storytelling-students add the music and movement)

Demi’s Reflective Fables by Demi (Chinese fables-create music and movement)

Squids Will Be Squids by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith (quirky fables that relate to older children-add music and movement and act out)

Fables by Arnold Lobel (original fables-add music and movement)

Giving Thanks: a Native American Good Morning Message by Chief Jake Swamp (add music and movement)

Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae and Guy Parker-Rees

The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf (use music from the opera Carmen by Bizet to act out)

Joyful Noise Poems for two Voices by Paul Fleischman (add drama, music, movement)

Haiku by Patrician Donegan (Learn to express yourself by writing poetry in the Japanese tradition-add music and movement)

Thirteen Moons on Turtle’s Back by Joseph Bruchac (A native American Year of Moons in poetry)

Harriet and the Promised Land by Jacob Lawrence (story of Harriet Tubman’s life in rhyme-add instruments)

Max Found Two Sticks by Brian Pinkney (all time favorite to introduce “STOMP” to students by layering in ostinati found in the book)

American Folklore, Legends and Tall Tales for Readers Theatre by Anthony D. Fredericks (add music and movement)

Strega Nona by Tomie de Paola (perform as Readers Theatre-see attached notes)

On Halloween Night by Ferida Wolff and Dolores Kozielski (create a melody and sing the book in dorian or Phrygian mode)

Demi’s Dragons and Fantastic Creatures by Demi (set the short poems to music from Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and act out using Laban movement)

Rap A Tap Tap Here’s Bojangles-Think of That! By Leo & Diane Dillon (add some jazz and sing the repeating refrain-add movement-see attached notes)

Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp by Carol Diggory Shields (rhyming book-add music and dance)

Great books that correlate with songs:

Father Grumble by John Feierabend

Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter

There Once Was a Man Named Michael Finnegan by Mary Ann Hoberman

Mama Don’t Allow by Thatcher Hurd

Abiyoyo by Pete Seeger

5 Little Ducks by Raffi

Shake My Sillies Out by Raffi

Down by the Bay by Raffi

Baby Beluga by Raffi

Wheels on the Bus

Linda's Workshop on Literature in Music:

There is a wealth of quality children’s literature that will inspire and motivate children to improvise and create music, movement and drama.

This workshop will include the following literature:

Primary grades Intermediate Grades

Nursery Rhymes Hump di dumped nursery rhymes

Little Red Hen Rap a Tap Tap

The Mitten Arrow to the Son

Good Night Good Knight Strega Nona (Reader’s Theatre)

Anansi the Spider The First Song Ever Sung

The Little Old Lady Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything

Linda Ahlstedt loves teaching so much that she is still teaching while retired! It's a joy for her and this pours from her like honey from a comb. She has been honored by the Rochester Philharmonic and OAKE among other great organizations. She teaches level courses during the summer months. For her complete bio, click here. She may be contacted by clicking here.

Literature in the Music Classroom #1, Pre-K-2

2011-05-16T17:58:00.000-07:00

*This series of posts is authored by Orff Master Teacher, Linda Ahlstedt. See the foot of each post for her bio and contact information.

For pre-school, kindergarten, first and second grade students, select stories with lots of rhymes, numbers or letters. Choose stories in which the students can provide sound effects. In stories with cumulative or repeating characters , particular sound effects or instruments can represent a character. At first you should guide your students in making appropriate representative choices, but as they grow in experience allow them the freedom to choose. Choose picture books without a lot of words on the page. Create a simple song that can be repeated several times to unify the action. Here are some suggestions for early learners.

The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle (actors and selected instruments represent animals)

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle (a beautiful story of metamorphosis-act bit out and different instruments can represent the foods eaten)

Rooster’s Off to See the World by Eric Carle (create “walking music” for walk around the world and different instrumental music for each set of creatures)

The Bad-Tempered Ladybird by Eric Carle (a good story for expressive emotions)

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do You See? by Eric Carle (sing the book on sol and mi-teacher sings questions class answers)

Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What do you Hear? by Eric Carle (sing the book and add sound effects or instruments for the animal sounds)

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams (use appropriate instruments to imitate the ghost’s sounds)

Old Devil Wind by Bill Martin Jr. (cumulative ghost story-choose appropriate instruments)

A Dark, Dark, Tale by Ruth Brown (choose different instruments whose sound can last for 4 beats to play at the end of each page-teaching whole note)

The Napping House by Audrey and Don Wood (cumulative book with repeating characters-add a lullaby at the end of each page)

++++++

Silly Sally by Audrey and Don Wood (a cumulative story that can be acted out or sung-music by Gloria Fuoco Lawson in the notes-singing in parts for older children)

Rain Song by Lezlie Evans (rhyming story-create a sound carpet as you build the storm)

The Mitten by Jan Brett (add instruments for animal characters and sing-attached in the notes)

Good Night Good Knight by Shelley Moore Thomas (great story for introduction to the Orff instruments using glissandi)

Time for Bed Mem Fox (students can fill in the rhyming words as you sing the book using the A section of the pentatonic melody The Day is Now Over p. 19 Music for Children by Orff/Keetman Vol. I Murray edition)

Caps For Sale by Esphyr Slolodkina (act out and add glocks for up/down effect)

Three Singing Pigs by Kaye Umansky (a treasure trove of stories and music)

Nursery Rhymes (add instruments on special words-for older children add layered ostinati-repeated rhythm patterns using speech, body percussion or instruments)

Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed by Eileen Christelow (sing the book)

Orff Performance of the Month

2011-05-09T17:49:00.000-07:00

This is classic Orff. Dance, music and poetry are incorporated in a joyful performance that was child-generated. The teacher's youtube channel is here. Enjoy!

Faith at Work

2011-05-02T07:23:00.000-07:00

The other day some tween girls sought me out to ask about my cross. I bought it at a pawn shop in Boca Raton, Florida some 15 years ago. I love my cross. It reflects my Orthodox Christian faith. (I'm hoping that it is not the only thing about me that reflects my faith.) The girls showed me a symbol that, they said, is associated with witches in Salem. Our school is near Salem, Massachusetts, so I'm not sure if the symbol is concerning the famous witches of the past or the Wiccas of the present.

I explained to the girls that is was NOT a sign of witchcraft, but something quite opposite. It is a sign of the cross of Christ. I explained the details of the cross. The top bar represents the sign that read, "King of the Jews", etc. The girls thought that crucifixion sounded pretty gory and I agreed. My officemate broke into the conversation and said, "you should say that some people believe that this happened. The bible wasn't written for 100 years after the events." I was a bit flabbergasted. Has political correctness come to the point where we cannot answer a simple question about faith without provisos?

In The United States, we have freedom of religion and freedom from religion. I have the right to wear my cross and to explain my beliefs or state historical facts to students where appropriate developmentally. The crucifixion is an historical fact, the resurrection is a matter of faith. A professor, teaching a course on Catholicism, was fired for giving the church's position on homosexuality. He was later reinstated after a national outcry. I was scared when my colleague said what she did because I didn't want my job to be on the line if I answered a simple question from a student. As a country, we've concentrated too much on freedom from religion and not allowed freedom of religion.

Thousands of people wear turbans, stars, crosses, scapulars, hijabs, kippots, bindis, and other visible signs of their inward faith. It is the lack of understanding of those faiths that has lead to the hysteria and fear that grips our country.

We need to set the example. Find out what you'd like to know. Ask a woman how she ties her hijab and if it gets hot in the summer. Ask a balding man with a kippot how he keeps it on. If you've always wanted to know something about a faith, just ask. I'm sure that the adults would love to share the information. Everyone would prefer to be asked than for answers (usually not flattering ones) to be assumed. I cannot tell you how much Muslim parents appreciate my good wishes to them during Ramadan or the pleasure an Hindu mother has in sharing her favorite recipes for the Dawalli festival. Let's not settle for tolerance. Understanding is the beginning of peace. Peace is the ultimate goal.

If you pray for a student, tell them when it is appropriate. I was touched when a Muslim parent prayed for my mother as she was dying. That kind of love transcends differences. I'm currently saying a Novena for a few of my students who are dealing with cancer in their families. Maybe someday I'll tell them. It just hasn't come up yet.

I will continue to answer questions when asked and to pray for my students and colleagues. I don't preach and I don't proselytize. I'm just being who I am, a woman who wears a cross.

Book Review: Sound Thinking

2011-04-28T07:03:00.000-07:00

(5 stars *****) Sound Thinking was first published in 1965 and are part of the initial phases of Kodaly education in the United States. Two volumes of this work is published by Boosey & Hawkes. Normally a very expensive publisher, Boosey prices these volumes under $20 a piece. I have some older copies and the bindings are shot. I think I will rebind them this summer.

Philip Tacka and Michael Houlahan are both professors at Millersville University in Pennsylvania. Dr. Houlahan chairs the music department there. The two are Hungarian trained at the Liszt Academy in Budapest. They have the strongest background in Kodaly methods and their book is easy to use and accessible for students.

I have been using these books lately in response to some Middle School students who complained that they "never learned to read music." Now that I have been at the school for 3 years, it's time to bring Middle School up to the level and standard that Lower Elementary has enjoyed. I'm using these books!

Middle School students are very intimidated at first, but the slow and steady progression of skills helps them feel each new cognitive accomplishment. They are so proud of themselves. I highly recommend these books, especially Volume 1. Use exercises from them and make up your own exercises based on the kind of work in them. You won't be disappointed.

Doctors Houlahan and Tacka have a new book, Kodaly Today, a college level textbook. That book sells for $45 and I'm anxious to get my hands on a copy.

Food Revolution

2011-04-20T17:23:00.000-07:00

Jamie Oliver with school children in
Huntington, West Virginia

Jamie Oliver is a British native who is kicking ass and taking names in his Food Revolution. America's schools are drowning in a sea of sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, fat, pink slime, and plastic packaging. Discipline problems plague our inner-cities. I have personal experience teaching in two different inner-city districts in Massachusetts. I saw how my students ate. Students who ate poorer quality foods tended to cause the most discipline problems. YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT!

These clips are about FLAVORED MILK ONLY. For the first episode of this season of The Revolution, see the bottom of this post.

Snack time in a Montessori classroom. Note the place mats,
use of dishes instead of Styrofoam, lack of children screaming,
relaxed body language of teachers, and fresh food. When I
worked in Maine the food quality was outstanding. If a poor,
rural state like Maine can have excellent food, why not a wealthy
state with cities and industry like Massachusetts, New York,
California, or Texas?

The Montessori school has been a very welcome change nutritionally. Students eat a wide variety of fresh, well-prepared and balanced foods. They are required to eat them in a peaceful and respectful manner. I don't believe that this is because of socio-economic status or the fact that they are in a private school. Children are children. They match their behavior to expectations, not stereotypes. If they are expected to drink unflavored milk and water, they do just that. Fast food is an occasional treat for the students at my school. As a result, they have the lowest obesity rate that I have ever seen in my 10+ years of teaching!

How does this effect the music classroom?

no students avoid chasing, running, skipping, dancing, or creative movement activities and games
violence against teachers is unheard of in the school
children are less aggressive
children sleep better and are more alert at all points during the school day
children can control their bodies better and avoid accidents
children see food as a social event and means of nourishment instead of a recreational drug, this makes them look at other activities like music as more than entertainment
songs and games about fruits (Apple tree, Old Roger), vegetables (Oats Peas Beans, Ol' Mister Rabbit, etc.) are about things that the children actually know

It is common for public school students to get calls home before the annual MCAS exams are administered. The gist of these calls is as follows.

Your child is taking a test tomorrow
Make sure they get enough sleep
Make sure they have a hearty breakfast
Make sure they are on time to school

Are you kidding me?!!!!!

Parents have to be told this?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A family eating good food together in peace. Wouldn't
such a family also be expected to sing, dance, and play
together in peace?

Food, clothing, and shelter for children are the responsibility of families. As we have stuffed our faces with cheap, calorie-rich foods, we've forgotten to be adults. One of the reasons I do not want to teach in my home district is because I intend to be active in making those schools healthier places to be. I can't do that and maintain employment in the same district.

I'm absolutely behind Jamie Oliver's initiative. It's one that I am taking on personally in my battle of the bulge. My little daughter does not have a weight problem and I'm going to do everything in my power to help her to never develop one. The first step, get myself in shape and eating healthy food. Next step, working in my community to improve food in the schools. Are you on board too?

Songs my Middle School students beg for

2011-04-18T06:11:00.000-07:00

Middle School students can't get enough of sappy love songs. I love that about them. I told my Middle School students that I wanted them to sing one song really well. They didn't have to sing it in public, but I wanted it to be a song that they would really own. They picked this one. It should be in print by the time this post comes out. I think it's great to sing for Mother's Day (alter the part about kissing her lips all day and the sexy laugh).

This is another one that they just begged to sing.

This one is about a woman who doesn't love him, but he loves her. I like songs that help young people sort out feeling from reality. Romance and sexual attraction is an emotional mine field. Read the lyrics to this song. It is a great lesson for young men and women.

Glee has transformed secondary vocal music education. No matter what, students want to sing Glee songs.

Glee - Don't Stop Believe by Bugabookas

The above video is of a song that was filked by two of my Middle School boys. They used this song to illustrate the characters in Pearl Buck's, "The Good Earth" in a previous post.

Death, Cancer, and Teaching

2011-04-13T18:56:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow our school is dismissing 15 minutes early so that we can attend a memorial service for the father of 3 of our students. This family has been an integral part of our school culture since their oldest entered Children's House in 2003. Their father had Multiple Myeloma since I first started at the Montessori School. It will be wonderful to be part of a crowd of supporters.

Last week one of my students asked me about Leukemia. Our conversation ended up at the computer, looking up definitions. That student's cousin was just diagnosed.

Cancer and other serious illness touches many of our students' lives. Death is part of life and some people experience a close death during childhood. Sometimes we are coping with a serious illness too. I remember my 4th Grade teacher being away for a month when she received treatment for breast cancer. Our class learned "The Rose" and sang it into a tape recorder. I still know that song and cherish the memory of that "recording session."

It's important that children dealing with such stressful situations have a "normal" place to be. School gives structure, predictability, engaging distraction, and supportive people for students in crisis. Don't address the student about what they are going through. Let them have their privacy. Let them initiate conversation. If you have established an atmosphere of warmth and openness, they will come.

The student whose cousin has Leukemia opened up to me, but not to his classroom teacher. He had a special bond with me. He noticed my cross early in the year. He asked about it and we found that we have the same faith. Don't be hurt if a child does not seek you out. It is not because they don't trust you. Everyone is different. Keep an eye out for children in crisis and keep communication open with parents. Stay in contact with the school psychologist and administration.

We can't take away the pain, but we can help them make it through. In this beautiful season of spring, it's tough to be dealing with death. A few adults in our building lost their mothers this spring, I was one of them. Now 3 of our students lost their dad. We need to pray, we need to be gentle with one another, and we need to just go through our days "being normal."

May God bless the souls of the departed and watch over those suffering and afraid.

Her Morning, just because it's cool

2011-04-04T09:27:00.000-07:00

I have long thought that it would be wonderful if movie theaters showed a short film before each feature. It would even be great if a feature could be several shorts. Pixar routinely provides a short film before each of their feature films. I love great short films. A previous post featured the film No Bikini. I showed the film Full Disclosure at my bridal shower. The movie Mother Superior opened my eyes to the scourge of meth-amphetamine, even among housewives. Here is one that can inspire students. I imagine them being very excited to try to make their own stop-motion animation at home. Why not have a film-scoring contest for the winning film. Weather this is ever used in the classroom or not, it's very cool and exciting for the imagination. Enjoy!

Curriculum Mapping

2011-03-29T06:15:00.000-07:00

Have a curriculum map so that, when your world is
turned upside down, you can still teach well.

Death of a parent, divorce, illness, family tragedy, natural disaster, maternity leave: these are all influences that can derail your school year. Some people are more resilient than others, but no one is immune from extreme distraction as a teacher.

How do we keep teaching well when our minds are scrambled?

Have a curriculum map and stick to it!

What is a curriculum map?

A curriculum map for reading skills in second grade

A curriculum map is a plan for the building of skills in students. If students are in second grade, they need to be able to sight sing limited-range pentatonic songs, improvise on the extended pentatony, read and write rhythms in 2, 4, and triplet meter, and learn 4 pieces of art music by the end of the year. During the summer, the music teacher will tease out which of these skills to attack first with consciousness and how to prepare the others. She may review in September while preparing composition in 6/8 meter. October will be dedicated to 6/8 composition, learning an art piece in 6/8, and aural preparation for low so. By the end of the process, the teacher has mapped out what will happen in each of the months of the school year.

Pitfalls of Curriculum Mapping
Make sure that you account for the following variables while mapping your curriculum.

DON'T OVERPLAN. Let yourself have some wiggle room if you'd like to explore something with more depth.
Always include benchmarks for the preparation of your concerts as well as reading and writing skills
Take snowy days, flu season, and class trips into account. You might not want to plan lots of advancement in December and January if you tend to have several snow days and 20% of your population absent each week.
Don't be married to what you "should" be teaching. Most Kodaly curriculum was designed for classes that meet more than once per week. Do your best and be thorough.

But I didn't do this and now it's March and I don't know what to do!

There are three fantastic curriculum maps that can save your bacon! If you've been going on auto-pilot for years and are just now finding yourself feeling like the rug has been pulled out from under you, fear not. Use one of these maps and take the above provisos into account.

Eisen, A. & Robertson, L. (1996). An American Methodology. Sneaky Snake Pub.

This book also comes in a flip-calendar form. The flip-calendar is designed for the curriculum to be presented with three weekly classes. Adjust the speed accordingly. I really love this book because it integrates the melodic and rhythmic elements through the years of study. There is plenty of room for annotations. I've added many pieces of music to the retrieval system, especially art pieces. The back of the book has printed songs. This is a fabulous resource.

Epstein, M. & Rappaport, J. (2001). The Kodály Teaching Weave, Vol. II. Pro Canto Press, Westborough, MA.

This publication is short! It is an outline of melodic and rhythmic elements in order. There are no dates published, just the order. It's a great, quick reference that can help you stay on track. It is limited in that it relies on the teacher having a good retrieval system already. You can put sticky notes on the map for the different classes you have. John and Mary's book is the best way to make sure you don't leave anything out!

Choksy, Lois. The Kodaly Context Prentiss Hall

This book is organized by grade level. The end of each chapter has a month by month curriculum map of that year. Each month shows what skills are being prepared, which made conscious, and which are being practiced. I love the pace of the mapping. I also love how the maps end in May. When June comes, it's just not realistic to instill new skills. A well thought-out book.

What are the costs of these books and maps?

The Kodaly Teaching weave is the cheapest by far! However, you can get significantly better prices by purchasing used books during the off-season (winter and spring.) Teachers are searching for these books during the summer and fall, when they have studied or need books for classes. As the school year goes on, teachers forget about the books they wanted and the price and availability may be better.

I got the Choksy book above for $5, it normally goes for $75 or more! Keep your eyes open.

If you are going through a tough time, I'm very sorry. I feel for you. I hope this post helps you do your best. I'm writing it to remind myself of what I need to do to make it through the rest of the year.

Song of the Month, March

2011-03-26T19:02:00.000-07:00

The Farmer in the Dell
(tone set: s, Drm sl)

Game Variation:
If space is at issue, have the farmer be in the center of the circle and pull others into the circle. You can omit the "saying good-bye" portion and go from everyone in the circle to "the cheese stands alone." At that point all but "the cheese" exits back to their circle spots .

There are many picture books of this song too. Enjoy!

Songs about Death

2011-03-22T05:13:00.000-07:00

If you've been following the blog since the beginning, (2007) you know that my mother has been battling cancer and chemotherapy since the fall of that year. Well, it looks like she's about to end her journey. I pre-write most of my posts. By the time this is posted, she will most likely have died. I'll be in the position that many of my students have faced. I will have lost a parent.

Looking at my repertoire, I'm amazed by the presence of death, dying, and suffering in many songs and games. Most of the songs we Kodaly teachers use are over 100 years old. These songs were created to help children deal with the death around them. It was rare for children to escape childhood without losing a sibling (or many siblings), a mother in childbirth or complications in pregnancy, a father to an industrial accident, a pet, an aunt or uncle, grandparents. Today such losses are less common with only pets and grandparents being common losses for children. Our culture doesn't talk about death and this leaves grieving children feeling more isolated and alone than they should.

Let's examine some standard songs in a typical Kodaly elementary classroom that deal with death and dying. In my experience it is adults, not children who try to avoid the subject of death. Adults try to cleanse children's world of unpleasantness. Death is part of every person's life and needs to be treated with tenderness, honesty, and respect. Rather than ignoring it, let's embrace our historical songs and learn how to grieve from our ancestors.

Who killed Cocky Robin
The video that heads this post is the variant of the song that I know best. I taught this last year to second graders. It is a fabulous so-mi-la song. The kids really loved it because it was the first long song that they could read. This year I have a child in that class whose father is gravely ill. The song, which deals with the process of death, preparing the body, and burial, may be comforting for her or it may be traumatic. Since her father is alive, she has not been exposed to the concept of a loved one as a body instead of alive. I think that, this year, I'll choose another song for her class. Here is a link for you to hear Alan Mills sing another variant of this classic Appalachian song.

This song is great in the context of hunting and wild game songs. You can pair it with many standard elementary songs.

The book, "Oh a-hunting we will go" by John Langstaff is a wonderful book with a tuneful melody. It's good for low so, low mi, and it throws in a fa at the end. It has a mi-re-do pick up. It's good comic relief to Cocky Robin and it's a faster tempo.
Kangaroo, this song (ssm, ssm, ssmmssm, ssmmssm, sfmrddd) is a great song for a sitting circle. The last phrase "look who's caught you just for fun," is sung by a solo singer. The person who had been hiding their eyes in the center then guesses who "caught" them.
Shoo Turkey is a wonderful call and response song from the Georgia Sea Islands. This song is in "Step it Down", the classic collection of songs dictated by Bessie Smith. This song begins with students sitting and is an excellent transition to standing. At the end, when you "shoo the turkey," students stand and make sweeping gestures with their hands while strutting like turkeys. It's a fun game. I play it differently than Miss Bessie. I have students hide their eyes and I pick a "turkey" to be caught. That person goes into the "fort" and puts one foot out. We all have to guess whose turkey foot it is.

Tom Dooley and The Banks of the Ohio and Frankie and Johnny

I remember singing this song at Third Grade Hootenanny and thinking "gee, this is a naughty thing to sing about." Tom Dooley killed his girlfriend in a jealous rage and now faces death by hanging. The Banks of the Ohio is sung by the boyfriend who killed the girl and Tom Dooley is sung by someone witnessing the execution. These songs are appropriate for upper elementary age children (9+ years old).

Frankie and Johnny is a great middle school song. The subject is jealous murder of a lover, but the pentatonic melody is a jazz standard. This song easily translates to Orff instruments, and there are many great renditions of it by jazz greats like Louis Armstrong, Anita O'Day, and Lena Horne.

Frankie caught Johnny cheating

If you choose to do Frankie and Johnny, you MUST frontload discussion of the idiom, "he done her wrong." The students need to hear the expression "being hard done by" or "you did a wrong there." If they do not understand this, they will construe that line to mean, "Johnny was bad at sex." This will get the class on a tangent that you don't want.

All three of these songs are great for tweens and teens. These children are working out the implications of their burgeoning sexuality. These songs deal with the extreme consequences of extreme adolescent infatuation. These songs help students sort out right and wrong thinking and feeling when their thinking and feeling is most confused.

Placido Domingo as Otello
Portrayal of a black man as wealthy
and powerful. Video is about $30
or you can rent from Netflix!

Click on the titles to hear the songs. Keep in mind that there are thousands of variants for each song. If you come across a different one, it's not wrong, just another kind of right.

These songs are also a great lead-in to opera. Middle school students LOVE Verdi's Otello. I show the Placido Domingo production in three classes. I make cuts for time, but the inner city kids that I taught loved it and applauded when Iago met his end. The opera promoted great discussion about communication and relationships. The kids loved the music, and never complained about subtitles.

Wallflowers
The link above brings you to an archival recording in the British Library. I know the version in Sail Away. This song is a great one for teaching the descending major triad, so-mi-do, reviewing so-la-so-mi, and working on dance improvisation. Students sing the song and can clap if they wish. At the end of the song, one student's name is called and that person gets up and dances in a wild and wacky manner, then bows to all. That person gets to call out the next name. In 3 minutes, everyone in a class of 20 can have a turn! The lyrics are

Sir Luke Filde's painting, "The Doctor"
a common scene for pre-20th century people

Wallflowers, wallflowers, growin' up so high
may I catch the measles and never never die
let's all go to (Sally's) house, she has not relations
She can tick and tack and turn about and
bow to the congregation

I do this with grade 3 and up. I talk about getting our shots to prevent diseases like measles. We discuss how common it was to have children die of measles and polio and other illness before we had vaccines. This painting can be made into a sound carpet or translated into a full composition using elements from Wallflowers in the Universal A section.

Old Roger is Dead
"Saved by the bell," it's not just a teen sitcom, it's an expression common during the gaslight era. Before gas was scented with rotten egg smell, it killed thousands from leaks. Many others seemed dead, their pulse was hard to detect, their breathing was hard to detect, and they had the pallor of death. People were buried alive in many cases. When bodies were exhumed, the coffins were scratched to the bare wood from the inside! People took to running a bell pull from the hand of the departed, through the coffin, to a bell on the surface of the grave. If a person wasn't really dead, they would pull the bell and "be saved by the bell." This is the context of "Old Roger is Dead."

This call and response song is great for teaching the ascending phrase, so-la-ti-do. It is a role-play game where one person is the non-dead, Old Roger, another is the apple tree, another is the wind, and the last is the Old Woman. At the end of the song, Roger jumps up, knocks the woman on the head and the woman hops away. You can find a different variant (the one I use) and a complete game description in 120 Singing games and dances by Lois Choksy. I use this song with elementary children aged 9+.

The link for Old Roger above also brings you to other songs that I did not previously know, but have a dark subject. "The worms crept out," is about a woman who is dealing with her own mortality. "He took a dagger" seems to be in the vein of "Tom Dooley."

If you want to suggest a great horror/suspense movie to your students around Halloween, why not the Ingrid Bergman classic, "Gaslight."

Old Blue
This is the only song about death that has ever made a child sad in my classroom. It's about a dog, Blue, who gets ill and dies. The child who sings about him misses him a lot and honors his memory with the song. Younger children express their similar feelings about loss of loved ones when this song is sung. Depending on the adults, you may want to be careful with it. As I mentioned before, children don't have a problem expressing grief, adults have a problem with children expressing grief.

The Gypsy Rover and Black Jack Davy
My upper elementary students love these songs. They can easily be found in Sail Away or 150 American Folksongs. They come in various modes and deal with children losing their mother in childbirth. The "Gypsy Rover" or "Black Jack Davy" is death. Death comes and woos the woman who "leaves her lover and children" to follow him over hill and dale. The husband usually goes to the edge of "the water" and tries to talk her out of leaving, but she chooses to go. These songs are appropriate for children over the age of 9, but I have had some adults expressing concern about the "edginess" of the lyrics.

Many variants of these songs are quite lively and cheery. It's quite possible for a class to sing them and never realize the true nature of the lyrics. It's amazing how much more they enjoy the songs, however, when they realize what the lyrics are about.

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, Dry Bones, and other Slave spirituals
Slavery is a biennial topic for our middle school, and it is very common in middle and high school curricula. How great would it be to join with your middle school team and have students learn spirituals while they read Uncle Tom's Cabin, learn about Lincoln and Frederick Douglas, discover the underground railroad, and discuss Buffalo Soldiers and the aftermath of the Civil War!? You can even integrate with the health teacher on mental health by discussing the role of music in preserving the spirits of slaves who underwent unimaginable hardships and brutality. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1fExqH6htg&playnext=1&list=PL026123E5E73BE24D

The bible is being taught as literature and for its historical influence in many public and private schools. Pairing Negro Spirituals with the bible as literature would be a deeply personal and engaging way to present music to your middle school students.

Battle Hymn of the Republic, When Johnny Comes Marching Home, and The Dying Redcoat
Soldiers go off to war and sometimes, they do not return. Children with fathers and other family members deployed overseas live with this truth daily. Patriotic songs that don't gloss over the danger and tragedy that comes with being a soldier are wonderful for children to sing. Don't neglect these songs around Memorial Day and Veterans Day. President's Week vacation is also a good time to trot out the patriotic, historical songs.

The last song listed above is from a series of newsletters from the 1980s called "Folksong in the Classroom." Most of those songs have been compiled in an excellent book called "Ballad of America." I'm going to buy said book with the proceeds from ads on this blog. Please CLICK CLICK CLICK on the ads! I want that book!

Dangerous jobs and work songs,
The Blantyre Explosion, The Dying Cowboy, and John Henry
Children will not realize how completely unexpected the rescue of the Chilean Miners was, because they have only known that disaster and probably do not live in a mining town. The fact is that the case of the Chilean Miners is unique. It has never happened before. When mining accidents happen, people die. It happened in Chile too, only some were saved, very very blessed men. The building of bridges, railways, highways and the delivering of fuel and supplies has always been dangerous. Songs of this ilk are paired effectively with the reading of Moby Dick and other classic tales of dangerous jobs.

Moby Dick can be studied in English while shanties are
studied in music class!

Research projects for music class can easily be done on dangerous jobs or even prison songs. Have students brainstorm dangerous jobs of the 19th century and earlier, then have them find songs on those subjects. Have them analyse the lyrics and melodies. How does the music give evidence of the culture of work, life, and mourning from that time?

This link, which includes a variant of John Henry, has other great songs which deal with danger and death.

P.S. My mother died on February 17. This is a link to the obituary. May her memory be eternal.

Sound Carpets

2011-03-15T16:49:00.000-07:00

A sound carpet is a texture of simultaneously performed ostinatos. Ostinati can be body percussion, unpitched percussion, bar percussion, band instruments, the strings of a piano, classroom objects, and even vocal sound effects.

The analogy is to a carpet whose warp and weft entwine.

Rule #1: Slow and Stead beat is the warp and weft

Use bass timbres for this. Ostinato patterns can be composed or improvised.

On top of the warp and weft, you add the pattern of the rug. One way you do this in a real rug is to latch hook. A young person explains how to do this above.

Rule #2: Increase speed as Timbre Rises

Choose foot stomps, bass bars, large drums, bass xylophones, and large found objects for the warp and weft.
Add the next biggest instruments which will play at faster speed.
Add the highest pitched instruments at the fastest speed
Add color or sound effect instruments last

You can meld different carpets together as the class at the top of this post did. All the class needs to do is agree on which carpets will be melded and what the sign is for transition. In this case, a whistle.

"P", The Bucket Routine for older students

2011-03-09T07:23:00.000-08:00

Today's Orffabet letter is P, for the shape of buckets and sticks when they are in storage in our guest teacher's classroom.

The following post and series of videos is for Upper Elementary, Middle School, or High School Students. This is a rare opportunity for you to learn a routine without having to go to a workshop or Orff level. You will learn the routine as your students would.

John is a teacher in the Worcester Public Schools. He has taught this routine to Upper Elementary students as an after school program. John's students worked on the routine for an hour or so every day for 6 weeks. To see John in an earlier post, click here.

The "students" in this video are Orff Level I students in the Worcester Public Schools class of 2010. They learned the routine in a 90 minute session with Level III students who already knew it. Here is the routine after those 90 minutes.

This routine, inspired by African dance and Orff body percussion, is well outside the comfort level of some of these students. For others, the routine is challenging but fun. Watch how John responds to these students. As he teaches, he assesses student ability and preference and coaches them into the roles that best suit them.

The teaching style is classic Orff.

First, he teaches the neumonics. "The strong hand is...and the weak hand is..."

He teaches the body percussion with the neumonics.

Students drill the patterns and gradually put them together in the performance sequence.

Here we learn the rest of the body percussion and transition from part 1 to part 2. Notice the consistency of John's speech.

Now for the introduction for the entire routine. How do we get into places for the beginning? This is how.

Now for the ending. There are three parts to this bit. The 4 bass drum bucket people are on either side of the stage doing their thing. The soloists are doing question and answers at the center of the line. The majority of performers will be doing this body percussion a la Keith Terry. For a little bit more of John's presentation of this percussion click here.

John explains why sticks need to be held in both hands. He takes plenty of time to explain it at the beginning so that he won't have to keep repeating himself. The rest of his instruction on sticks is here.

Once buckets are introduced, the tutti part is the most crucial to nail down. There has been so much repetition for part 1, that it might be best to work on the ending first.

The four bass drum players, the heart of the steady beat, need their instruction now. John always chooses kids who are leaders for these jobs. It's tough for them because the part is ostensibly easier, but it's so crucial to the success of the whole performance that they need to do it. When this is explained to kids, they happily give up the chance to solo. For the rest of his instruction to the bass drum players, click here.

The rest of the videos fit into the process of teaching the routine. If you are seriously considering doing this routine I suggest you study them too. I also suggest you contact John. He's a wonderful person and a great teacher. He would be happy to coach you via email, skype, or your district could hire him to do a workshop. I think this routine would make a really awesome flash mob.

The Cost of Kodaly #3

2011-03-05T07:51:00.000-08:00

New England Conservatory, Arizona State, McNesse University, Silver Lake College, Hartt School, Pensacola State University

Name of Institution	Tuition Level 1 Level 1 with Graduate credit	Tuition Level 2 and 3 With Grad Credit	Extra Classes? Credits?	Housing
New England Conservatory, Boston, Massachuesetts Concurrent with youth choir camp $75 application fee	$2120 (6 credits) Credits require additional $35 fee	$2120 (6 credits) $700 Retreival System (2 grad credits)	1-week non-level 1 credit course $350-625 Solfeg bootcamp Folkdance and games and ballads Post-levels refresher New program for academic year graduate study!	$55-85/night with air conditioning 40-75/night without air conditioning
Arizona State University 2-week course	$595 (1 hr) $606 (2)$1115 (3)$1624	$595 although $296 for review not listed on OAKE website, ASU does offer level III	$175 for one-week courses $395 for two-week courses subjects not Kodaly specific and range from guitar to Mariachi! Orff Levels run before Kodaly levels	On campus housing for the entire summer ranges from $850-1200 May-August!
McNesse State University, Lake Charles, LA	*(6 hours) $865.50 resident (6 hours) $2022 non-resident** *this is lower than last year's price, so please check with the program to be sure of the exact amount	*(6 hours) $865.50 resident (6 hours) $2022 non-resident**	No
Silver Lake College Download brochure here.	6+ credits Undergrad credits, course is $2695 Grad credits would be $2875	18 credits for the entire program	Yes, see the brochure for complete list which includes Kodaly and Hispanic Music, Beyond the Classroom, and others.	$40/day due at checkout. Linen service is $7/week. Cafeteria is open and paid for at time of meal, not with meal plan. See the application for housing here.

Name of Institution	Tuition for level 1 With Grad Credit	Tuition Level 2 and 3 With Grad Credit	Extra Classes? Credits?	Housing
Hartt School of Music Offers full masters degree during the year* 2 week course	Level 1 and 2 $1482 (6.5 credits)	Level 3 $1482 (6.5 credits)	oodles of classes! Concurrent with levels, Conversational Solfeg, First Steps in Music Others not concurrent on Orff, Gordon, Multiple Intelligences, etc.	air conditioned, suite style, with kitchenette, double occupancy $35/night on campus, off-campus available for $79+
Pensacola Kodaly Institute 2-weeks	$495 $1273 (3 credits)	No	No	$320-500 for the course

*The Hartt School's website was really easy to negotiate. I found EVERYTHING I needed to know without an email to the program's director. This was awesome! If you have attended this program, please leave a comment on it. Is the program as easy to access as the site?Unless otherwise specified. Application fee is $50

Early bird registration rates can be 10-20% lower, check the top programs of your interest to secure the best deals.

Scholarships are available at most, if not all of the programs in this series of blogs. Apply early and contact program heads to get the best shot at a scholarship.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE ME TO PUT YOUR PROGRAM ON THE BLOG PLEASE CONTACT ME WITH ALL THE PERTINANT INFORMATION AND I'LL BE GLAD TO POST IT!

The Cost of Kodaly #2

2011-03-05T04:41:00.000-08:00

OMG, it's soooo expensive to get a Kodaly level out there! Let's price some of the programs from the USA and around the world. You figure out what the best value is. These levels are truly revolutionary for your teaching. I can't promote them strongly enough.

*If your program is not listed here or if there is an error in my figures or facts, please contact me and I will edit the post. Most people access posts of this nature months and even years after the original post date. Pictures, video, and links are also welcome.

Each program has an average application fee of $50.

Name of Institution	Tuition Level 1 Level 1 with Graduate credit	Tuition Level 2 and 3 With Grad Credit	Extra Classes? Credits?	Housing
Holy Names University	$1,225 5 credits $1,225	$1470 6 credits $1470	Yes, 1-credit courses (2) for 3 hours/day for one week, generally before the level courses commence 1-year Masters during the school year	$25-40, room and board! Wooded campus
New York University	$1990 3 credits $3609	Same as I, II	No	$1125, ($56/day) includes 10 meals
American Kodaly Institute, Loyola University of Maryland	9 credits $4275	Earn a Master’s Degree in 4 summers! For just over $17,000 you get a master’s degree. Not bad!	Yes, solfa fundementals before the class levels 1 credit $473	$46-51/day, efficiency apartment. You provide your cookware, utensils, dishes, etc.
Southern California Kodaly Institute, Ontario, CA	$630 7 quarter credits $630 additional credits not applicable to a graduate degree	Next offered in 2012	No	No housing available. Contact Kurt Cerescke to see if any housing becomes available
Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX Two week course	$695 (includes materials)	$695 (includes materials)		Local Hotels are suggested. Work out long-term rates with them or contact program director for more options
Minnesota University, Moorehead Two week course	$400	$400	Clinicians vary according to the year	$65-90 PER WEEK!!! That’s less than $10/day
Witchita State, Kansas Two week course * Has children's choral camp associated with it!	$400	$400	solfeg can be taken separately for 2 credits

DePaul University

$900
$1035 for 2 semester credits or 3 quarter-system credits. These are graduate credits.

same as level 1

Choral conducting

$102/night single
$51/night double
$34/night triple
meal plans available but not published yet.

All programs have an application fee of about $50

NYU made a video of their summer recorder consort

Here is a video of Witchita State's Program

You might want to consider the weather. California and Boston are sooooo nice in the summer. More southern climes less so. If you are going to Maryland, see if there is A/C in the rooms. I'm not sure about Hungary, but I've never heard any complaints about the weather. Are you going to vacation with your family? Take the National Parks, and other attractions into account. Holy Names is near Yosemite and the great city of San Francisco. NEC is right by the Freedom Trail and the famous Boston Esplanade.

First Steps in Teaching Creative Dance to Children

2011-03-02T10:50:00.000-08:00

Book Review:

Movement is crucial in excellent music education. It is the foundation of the Dalcroze Eurithmics method, an essential step in the preparation of Kodaly concepts, and one of the visual components that makes Orff Schulwerk performances engaging.

Ballet classes require a rehearsal pianist, lots of jargon, and a highly trained teacher. I don’t know Jazz and tap. I’m not as flexible or thin as I once was, so showing complex moves is not a great possibility in my classroom. I don’t want my physical limitations to limit 8-year-olds from bending themselves into pretzels.

Great news! First Steps in Teaching Creative Dance to Children by Mary Joyce is a great resource for teachers. The book that lays out a curriculum based on child development, the thinking behind the curriculum, 33 lessons, and ways to extend the lessons. Each lesson even gives the teacher language that would produce the best results in students.

I have felt the connection to music and my classmates as a student when my teacher used these techniques in my Orff level courses. I have used lessons from the book in my classroom with great success. With new lessons, I have been known to read out of the book to get the language just right. The results are wonderful.

When I find a piece of music that fits well with a movement activity, I make a note in the margins of the lesson. I suggest that once you do an activity with a cohort of students, you keep the same music when you revisit that lesson. Each lesson needs to be mastered before you apply that concept to a future dance.

These activities are perfect for

· Loosening up actors in chorus or

crowd scenes in musicals

· Allowing students to self-block scenes in drama and musicals

· Improving creativity in folk games which require students to make a movement

· Encourage critiquing skills by providing criteria for each dance activity

· Raising the level of trust among members of the class

· Providing transitional movements between pieces on a concert program

· Inspiring children to perform through an increased sense of fun and imagination

· Taking the stuffiness out of dance instruction

My copy was $10 plus shipping because I bought it used. I had the cover laminated and spiral bound for about $10 more. Now the book opens flat and is more sturdy than new. The book is listed on Amazon.com for $48. As I write this article, this site has used copies for as little as $4. Keep your eye out for a copy. Have it spiral bound and use it. You won't regret it.

Budgets close this month. This is also the time when summer plans are being made firm. Get the book.

Face Blindness

2011-02-28T06:55:00.000-08:00

Jane Goodall suffered from Prosopagnosia

Prosopagnosia (sometimes known as face blindness) is a disorder of face perception where the ability to recognize faces is impaired, while the ability to recognize other objects may be relatively intact.

Oliver Sacks suffers from severe Prosopagnosia

Did you know that people can have this problem without brain trauma or alzheimer's?
About 1-2% of people have a severe case of this brain function abnormality from birth. Such people do not even recognize themselves in a mirror. The noted neurologist, Oliver Sacks is one of that 1-2%.

Most people have imperfect facial recognition to some extent. This is precisely why eye-witness accounts are so unreliable. This common form of the brain anomoly does not effect the typical music student's work. Games can be played and projects done with children accustomed to one another.

What amazes me is how severe the condition can be. More severe than average cases tend to be co-morbid with Autism, Non-verbal learning disabilities, and brain trauma.

In a school of 500 students, 5-10 of them will

not recognize their family or themselves in the mirror
not recognize you or other teachers by face
suddenly be unable to know who you are if you lose weight, change your hair, change due to pregnancy, wear a different jacket etc.
be terrified that someone will find out

Students memorize people by their mannerisms, hair styles, scent, sound of voice, and general air about them. Imagine how difficult this can be playing Cookie Jar, changing partners, doing mixer dances, and other musical events.

I heard a podcast of WNYC's Radiolab, the show titled "The Stranger in the Mirror." To listen to that show, click here. To see your level of face blindness click here to take an online test. For the latest research, and to refer others, click here.

Anything we can do to be more sensitive to the struggles of our students is good!

Good luck!

Rebinding Sail Away and Friends

2011-02-23T10:42:00.000-08:00

I spent the $20 and had Sail Away, 150 American Folksongs, and the Mary Joyce book spiral bound. I should have done it years ago. The covers were laminated before being bound. Now they open flat. What a pleasure! Do this before you take your Kodaly or Orff level this summer. You won't regret it.

Chaconne, Volume V, page 61

2011-02-16T06:49:00.000-08:00

Performed by members of Level III class from 2010 in Worcester, Massachusetts. Our director is Linda Ahlstedt. When our colleague, Sophie, suggested we record this piece, our whole class got excited. We were honored that she'd want a record of it, and we were energized to practice for a recorded product. All of these teachers are veteran musicians and teachers and yet recording gave them a jolt of inspiration to practice and concentrate on a very hot summer day.

Do you remember Lisa Lehmberg from last September's Kalimba post? She's the one in the blue shirt in front. The fellow with the beard, John, will be featured in a great set of posts on bucket percussion scheduled for March.

Because it feels good

2011-02-09T06:39:00.000-08:00

We're in the dead of winter. It's cold, it's grey, and summer seems so far away. Winter break is two long weeks away. You may be suffering from yet another cold. Your students are doing great, but you need a break! You are dreaming of Cancun. I don't blame you.

Take these next weeks and dedicate them to feeling good. Dance dances that make the students feel great and give you pleasure to demonstrate and watch. Play games and make joy the #1 objective of each lesson. But first and foremost

Teach Singing from the Perspective of Pleasure

I had the good fortune to meet Douglas Ahlstedt and take a short masterclass with him. He

showed several exercises that put the sound onto the breath and makes singing correct and very pleasurable. Afterward, I found myself singing in the car and enjoying the vibrations of my body. I allowed the vowels to mingle in my mouth like a flavorful stew.

If you live in the Pittsburg area, why not take a lesson or two with the good professor and correct some errors in singing? Take a lesson with a local teacher or attend a master class at local college. You could even read up on good vocal technique and gently explore your own voice. Share what you learn with your students. They feed off of your enthusiasm.

Here is a video of a Gaelic woman singing. There are some really good shots of her mouth and throat. Notice how she's enjoying her voice and connecting the vowels with her breath and her emotions. She's in such a state of pure pleasure that she makes you want to sing too. That is where we want our children to be when they are sining!

Don't forget to schedule a massage and a manicure!

Boom Pipes

2011-02-07T09:34:00.000-08:00

Boom wackers are out of tune plastic tubes that you hit against things to create pitch. I don't like them because they are out of tune. Boom pipes are a different story. They are much longer and wider. You stand, holding them on a carpet square and drop them down. The effect is of a contra-bass Orff bar! Here is a site that tells you how to make them. Warning, the PVC pipe is very dangerous to your lungs. Make sure you use protective equipment when cutting the pipe!

Today's video is of Blue Man Group playing pipes. The pipes used in the video are the same kind of PVC pipe you will make your Boom Pipes from, but they are played differently by Blue Man Group. A couple things are worth noting in the video.

These pipes can stand up to abuse!
They can be tuned pretty well, notice how the band is in tune with the pipes. Precision is not as necessary with the longer length tube.

Click here to see the pipes with a full symphony orchestra. They are played with paddles here.

This guy plays a PVC halo drum with flip flops! If you like boomwhackers, please just make them from PVC. See the above warning in red. They will sound like this.

Chinese Pictures inspiring Chinese New Year Music

2011-02-02T14:16:00.000-08:00

OMG, I was just browsing blogs and found a gorgeous one from China. You've got to go to his blog and browse the pictures. This photographer has an amazing eye. I'm going to use this with my students. Here is the process.

Explore So pentatonic via our choral piece and improvisation exercises.
Explore traditional Chinese timbres such as unpitched metal percussion
Do steps 4-7 as a class then do step 4
Students break into small groups and choose an envelop containing one of the pictures from the blog
Students need to come up with a sound carpet and a melody using unpitched percussion, a xylophone, and a recorder
Students add an element of visual such as dance, movement, puppetry, or other staging
Students share their picture and their performance with the class

Snow Day Thinking

2011-01-30T00:00:00.000-08:00

When you think of a snow day from school, what comes to mind? Pleasant thoughts? Joy? Sleeping in? A day off?

What would you imagine would make a child be sad or depressed on a snow day?

Watch today's video and think about that question.

Snow Birthday
What if the snow day was on the child's birthday? The above videos are of birthday walks, a Montessori tradition. Children tell the story of their lives to their classmates around the time of their birthday.

Just because 90% of students respond to a stimulus one way, does not mean that an unexpected reaction is illogical or unreasonable. When a student has a negative reaction to something you do or say, take a moment to figure out where the student is coming from. Below are some more examples of misunderstandings that hurt the teacher/student relationship.

The black girl and the pool
I've heard this story from several black women who grew up in white districts or went to predominantly white private schools. Their mother spends hours and hours on their hair. The following Monday the swimming unit in gym begins and the little girl refuses to go into the pool because of her hair. If she does go in the pool, she'll make her mother very upset because her hair will be destroyed. Teachers and administrators assume that "black kids hate water" or "are afraid of water" or "are difficult," when actually, they just want their hair style to last for the month as it is supposed to. This situation could be remedied by letting parents know when the swimming unit is going to happen or by administration asking the parent questions instead of just sending students to the principal's office.

Spanish Field Trip

Let's all go have some Spanish food! Everyone is excited to taste the new food. Teacher and parents have selected dishes that are not too spicy, have no nuts, and are authentically Spanish. But then there's Joey, he's got a milk allergy, not an intollerance, and allergy. He'll go into shock and possibly die if he has milk! For him the trip is a chore because he needs to research the food much more intensely. The teacher gets on the phone to speak to the owner of the restaurant (who doesn't speak English) and explain the situation. The child can easily feel ashamed or uncomfortable, perhaps a shy child would just be "sick" that day.

The Lighter Side

2011-01-26T05:39:00.000-08:00

I haven't written movie reviews or television reviews in years. Those posts got loads of positive feedback, and I think it's time to lighten things up for you once again.

Since my last posts labeled, "The Lighter Side," I've spent years teaching in a Montessori school, met and married my sweet husband, and had our daughter, Miriam. We have been caught in the financial crisis as have millions of our fellow Americans, and budgets are tights. Thankful for the jobs we have, our good health, and wanting to keep our money in the bank in case something happens, we are using Netflix to great advantage. The reviews below will cover one feature film, two television shows, and a series available on Netflix. Enjoy!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1

I'm just wild about Harry. Since discovering the books, I've stood in line at midnight for each release. I know them like I know that so-mi comes after ta ti-ti. The last book is a wonderful Christian allegory. It is not written as C.S. Lewis wrote his Narnia series, rather, Harry is more saint than messiah. Of all the movies, this one and the first follow the book the best. I would love to see Part 1 and Part 2 with an intermission in the theater in future. It would be great to see The Lord of the Rings, The Godfather, and other great epics in the same manner.

Summer 2010 Cycle in Los Angeles

Opera fans rejoice when Wagner's Ring of the Niebelungen is staged in sequence. The entire 4 opera cycle takes over 24 hours to perform! Last summer, fans flocked to Los Angeles to see all four operas performed. Have fun fishing through their site. There are pre-performance lecutres to hear, clips of video, beautiful pictures, and reviews. Yummmmmm!

"The Ring is coming to San Francisco. Booyah!"

The ring cycle in the United States will be staged this summer in San Francisco. That cycle has an entirely different artistic team behind it.

The Metropolitain Opera will be staging the 4 operas over the next two seasons (2011-2012,) and have recently reinforced their stage with steel to support the sets. The flaming destruction of Valhalla should be pretty spectacular! Read the New York Times article about their cycle here.

For those traditionalists who insist on a German staging of the epic, fly over to Bayreuth for the annual summer festival of The Ring.

Winter Wipeout

You know that summer vacation is at hand when Wipeout begins. Wipeout is an obstacle course game show. I absolutely love this show. It captures the American aesthetic for the absurd, sarcastic humor, its fascination with reality game shows, and loads of slapstick. It's on ABC Thursdays at 8. Don't miss it.

Peep and the Big Wide World

A PBS show for little ones, Peep and the Big Wide World is about a chick who finds out about science through adventures in his yard. So join Chirp, Quack, and Peep as they go on their adventures. Check local listings for Peep times. Check out their website for activities and interactive games. Link is in the title of this segment.

Farscape

My husband introduced me to this fabulous series. I will be introducing him to Firefly to return the compliment. I cannot say enough good things about this Jim Hensen production. It's Jim Hensen and is of equal or greater artistic quality as anything Sesame Street or The Muppets were, only this show is for adults. Step into the world of Farscape and let yourself be swept away with John!

That felt good! Hope you enjoyed it. Leave comments and maybe I'll write another in a few months.

Thinking Inside the Volumes #4, a Jumping-Off point

2011-01-21T10:16:00.000-08:00

Volume V
Page 44
Connemara Lullaby

This is a picture of "The Twelve Pins" of Connemara, Ireland. I love Irish melodies. They can float to God on the pillow of a drone. The piece in the volumes is in Dorian mode, but I was so excited by the beauty of the notes and the photos that I wanted to hear a performance. I popped over to youtube and heard the arrangement here.

This is not the piece in the volumes, but it was so haunting and beautiful, I decided to go with the song on youtube. Here's the scoop on that Connemara lullaby.

It's in Ionian mode on G
Chord changes are I-V, don't play bordun, just the roots of the chords
tone set = s,t, Drmfsl
pitches = D, F#,G, A, B,high C,high D, high E
Meter = 3
I'm going to have my students insert color, rhythmic ostinato, and movement.

On the wings of the wind o'er the dark rolling deep
Angels are coming to watch o'er thy sheep
Angels are coming to watch over thee
So list to the wind coming over the sea

Chorus:
Hear the wind blow love, hear the wind blow
Lean your head over and hear the wind blow

Oh, winds of the night, may your fury be crossed,
May no one who's dear to our island be lost
Blow the winds gently, calm be the foam
Shine the light brightly and guide them back home

Chorus

The currachs are sailing way out on the blue
Laden with herring of silvery hue
Silver the herring and silver the sea
And soon there'll be silver for baby and me

Chorus

The currachs tomorrow will stand on the shore
And daddy goes sailing, a sailing no more
The nets will be drying, the nets heaven blessed
And safe in my arms dear, contented he'll rest

Another lullaby from Connemara can be heard in the video below. This is in Gaelic and shows vistas of Connemara. The singing is without vibrato and with much melissmatic decoration. It's so beautiful and prayerful.

I'm going to take another look at the lullaby in the Volumes. It is gorgeous, perfect for practicing the recorder note F. The instrumental accompaniment is lovely for Lower Elementary age children. Perhaps I'll find an Irish poem to put to these notes. Perhaps I'll ask the childen to come up with some syllables to sing. The important aspect of a lullaby is beauty and love. Lyrics are secondary to the vowels they contain, especially when the audience is a pre-verbal child.

Thinking Inside the Volumes #3, Good to Go

2011-01-15T09:52:00.000-08:00

As you use the volumes, you will yearn to just be able to play and sing some of the pieces as they are. There are some that lend themselves to this. Here is a short list of pieces I've used.

Volume 1: Ding Dong, piece in canon for all the bar instruments plus temple blocks
Volume 1: Short pieces, #39, bar instruments
Volume IV: The coasts of High Barbary, guitar, e drone, glockenspiel, guitar (G and a minor chords), cymbals, recorder, drum

Scan whatever volume you have. Look for a vocal line that is either previously known, can be done on recorder, taught on bar instruments, or sung as a solfa exercise. Many of the words are either archaic, too babyish, or too religious for elementary and secondary students in American schools.

This is a song from the volumes, can you find out which one it is? Leave the title in comments, please.

Thinking Inside the Volumes #2, Volume IV and modal music

2011-01-10T06:36:00.000-08:00

"The Virgin Unspotted" is a gorgeous piece on page 72 of Volume IV. It's a Dorian melody with really easy ostinati (see January 1 post) that sound very difficult. The problem is the lyrics. Only in a private, Catholic school can one sing about "The Virgin Unspotted." So what's a teacher to do?

Here are some ideas.

You can keep the melody and change the words. Not up to it? Contact Linda Ahlstedt and ask for her version of the words. Her words have to do with snow and they are very beautiful. Linda has been gifted with the muse of poetry.
Find couplet poetry that fits
Have your students write lyrics. If they are doing a unit with their regular classroom teachers that could lead to strophes, all the better.
Teach the piece as a recorder piece
Teach the first phrase on recorder. Play it repeated as a "universal A section" and alternate with recorder improvisation question and answers in Dorian.

Turn the page and you're in Phrygian mode. "I'll never have my children work in Phrygian mode," you might say. Time to think inside the volumes. The xylophone accompaniments on page 77 of Volume IV are well worth teaching. It's also great to have children get different scales in their ear. Imagine them as accents. Here is a process.

Do creative movement exercises to pieces in Phrygian mode. How about Brahms 4th Symphony, the slow movement. Also the first and fourth movements of Bruckner's 8th Symphony have huge bits in Phrygian. For a more comprehensive list of Phrygian pieces, click here.
Now your students have moved to the feel of Phrygian mode.
Play an echo game on Phrygian motives to further embed the mode in students' ears.
Memorize a bunch of knock knock jokes. These are by nature call and response.
Practice singing these jokes in Phrygian during your commute to work, in the shower, etc. If the mode isn't in your ear, it won't be in theirs.
As some students perform the ostinato, you initiate a knock knock joke.
Students sing "who's there" via echoing your notes. The natural leaders of your class will lead the words, so don't sweat it.
You complete the joke.
Rotate ostinato people and repeat with another joke.
After two or three of these, you can show the students page 77. You can do this via overhead projector or a hand-out. Allow students to work in small groups. Ask which ostinati and songs you just sang. "Which melody was for the banana joke?"
Mix things up by putting different melodies with different ostinati.

You can then follow-up this activity with Phrygian improvisation via question and answers. Let me know if you try it.

Thinking Inside the Volumes #1, Body Percussion Blitz

2011-01-05T05:44:00.000-08:00

This post will be part of a series of posts exploring ways to think "outside the box" while being "inside the volumes." As I was imagining these posts, it struck me how much terminology is associated with both Kodaly and Orff Schulwerk. I thought of having a companion blog of definitions for links to click on, but figured that would be too cumbersome for you and difficult to maintain for me. These posts will have sister posts of definitions. I hope this helps clear up any confusion. It should also help Orff and Kodaly teachers who rely on translation software to read this blog. Every tool we can use to communicate is helpful.

Since completing Level III of Orff training, I've had some brainwaves about new ways to use the volumes. This has been tough for me. I knew Carl Orff as a classical composer. I was classically trained and saw the printed page of Western music as sacred.

The Orff volumes are more like a lead sheet than a score.

Volume 1 is a treasure trove of body percussion. Between pages 60-80 you will find dozens of challenging ostinato figures. Kodaly teachers can use these pages too. There is an amazing amount of body percussion in folksong and folk dance. Think of all the hand jives preserved by Bessie Jones. There are also thousands of body percussion moves to perform during jump rope rhymes.

Below is a video from the summer of 2010 in Boston. New England Conservatory has an amazing program called Vocal Vacation. It is a children's choral day camp. The folk song depicted here is from the diamond mines of South Africa. Miners used what they had at hand, their bodies and their gumboots. Virtually all of these body percussion moves can be found notated in Volume I! I intend to sit down with a cup of tea, Volume I and this video and notate this song. Of course, one could contact Susie Petrov to get the dance or just hire her to come to your school and teach it!

If you'd like a pdf copy of the song and steps, email me and I'll send you a pdf of the steps!